S02.E13: Mr. and Mrs. Mxyzptlk

[Perfect Xero]

14 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Note to fifth-dimensional imps . . . if you want to romance a lady, and you want to show yourself as a hero, do not get gussied up as her cousin while doing it. That's just weird.

I mean, she's dating a guy with the same last name as her and has spent multiple episodes trying to get him to look/act more like Clark.

You can see why a fifth-dimensional imp would be confused ...

[Twilight Man]

12 hours ago, immortalfrieza said:

"On some planets, to write something is to say it" When I saw that line I knew exactly what Kara was going to do to get rid of Mxyzptlk, so that much was predictable. Mxyzptlk has always been the sort of Superman villain whose entire purpose was just to show up, force Superman to use his head to beat him instead of just running in and blindly pounding away, then have Superman go back to doing nothing but just running up and punching bad guys afterward and I expect the same thing here. As always, it's fun to see all the wacky things Mxyzptlk does though screwing up reality though since it was live action there was only so much they could do with it.

Superman has managed to trick Mxyzptlk into writing his name backward several times.  Many of you (since you're mentioning Gilbert G) probably remember Superman tricking him into skywriting his name backward in his premiere episode in the TimmVerse.

So how exactly do you pronounce his name??  Let's ask Howie Mandel, Gilbert G, and all the other guys, shall we??

[bmoore4026]

This episode had a lot of missed opportunities.

One - why didn't they have a twist where Mxy was actually looked like a stereotypical basement dweller?  I think that would have been a good twist.  The guy they had just didn't give of the vibe of desperation or malice that a stalker should, let alone a stalker with Q powers.

Two - why wasn't the lady from Starhaven a Native American?  In the comics, the people of Starhaven resemble people from different Native American tribes and wings growing from their backs.  The legends of The Sky People are supposedly based on them.  I know I'm nitpicking, but it would have been nice for a American Indian actress to get a fair shake.

Still, we got to see Mon-El in his undies and dressed like Alexander Hamilton, so there's that.

Edited February 21, 2017 by bmoore4026

[Bort]

6 hours ago, Bats27 said:

alien GF (who looks like a cross between Buffy vampires and the Bajorans from Star Trek)

OMG, yes! That's exactly what she looked like, what an apt description.

5 hours ago, StarBrand said:

While I saw plenty of spoilers that shouted "THIS IS THE BIG ONE!", I'm not sure if the actual show runners quite advertised this ep as such. I'll have to look for that. I just have a feeling a lot of people trusted information from dubious sources. If it is true the showrunners said this ep would be all Sanvers, well, shame on them then.

Yeah, all I saw from network promos was Mxy/Kara/Mon-el stuff. I didn't see any indication that Alex and Maggie were even IN the episode, let alone supposedly featured. I think it's more a case of people seeking out specific spoilers and/or promotional material for them than it is a bait and switch.

[srpturtle80]

6 hours ago, JapMo said:

I liked Kara & Mon-El's argument in the DEO.  I felt the actors did a good job...that was not an easy scene to film.  I was waiting for them to pull a Sam & Diane on Cheers....."Are you as turned on as I am"....."More".  LOL.  

That is EXACTLY where I thought they were going with that scene! I thought for sure the next shot would be them going at it in some DEO storage closet. I was a little disappointed that it wasn't lol. 

[MarkHB]

7 hours ago, Bats27 said:

Winn and his alien GF (who looks like a cross between Buffy vampires and the Bajorans from Star Trek) were cute.

Nice description!  Maybe I've watched too many episodes of Cake Wars recently, but to me her makeup/appliance was so thick that it looked like it was carved out of fondant.

[stealinghome]

52 minutes ago, kariyaki said:

Yeah, all I saw from network promos was Mxy/Kara/Mon-el stuff. I didn't see any indication that Alex and Maggie were even IN the episode, let alone supposedly featured. I think it's more a case of people seeking out specific spoilers and/or promotional material for them than it is a bait and switch.

I'm not one of the people who's mad about it, BUT I don't think this is just a case of people seeking out only the spoilers they want. The first promotional material we got regarding this episode--pre-official press release even--hyped it up as a "Sanvers-centric" episode (that term was explicitly used in a headline, hence the quotes). I agree that as we got closer to the episode, the network promos were a more accurate reflection of the actual episode, but the expectation was raised early on that Maggie and Alex would, if not take center stage, at least have a good chunk of the episode. I wouldn't quite call it a bait-and-switch but I do think the initial promotional material/spoilers for the episode were misleading and created an expectation the ep itself failed to deliver.

[kalamac]

This was how it was first promo-ed back in January, by EW.

Someone who claims to be in the know on tumblr (I know...) says some of the writers are not happy with the direction Supergirl has taken with Mon-el/Kara, but a being made to write to what the CW thinks is the demographic.

 

[stealinghome]

Oh, I think we all know that Mon-El is a network directive. The CW has been trying to make Chris Wood happen for some time now, and it's clear as day the CW threw him at the Supergirl writers and said "make him Kara's love interest NOW!" He is absolutely every CW jackass white bland "bad boy" that the lead female has to swoon over.

But I still blame the writers because Mon-El aside, they're the ones who have failed to give Kara a storyline outside of him, who have minimized the family relationships so central to the show last season, and who have written what is on the whole a disappointing sophomore season, one or two bright spots (primarily Kara/Alex, Sanvers, and the little we got of M'gann) aside.

Edited February 21, 2017 by stealinghome

[Bort]

1 hour ago, stealinghome said:

I'm not one of the people who's mad about it, BUT I don't think this is just a case of people seeking out only the spoilers they want. The first promotional material we got regarding this episode--pre-official press release even--hyped it up as a "Sanvers-centric" episode (that term was explicitly used in a headline, hence the quotes). I agree that as we got closer to the episode, the network promos were a more accurate reflection of the actual episode, but the expectation was raised early on that Maggie and Alex would, if not take center stage, at least have a good chunk of the episode. I wouldn't quite call it a bait-and-switch but I do think the initial promotional material/spoilers for the episode were misleading and created an expectation the ep itself failed to deliver.

Fair enough. I never saw any initial promotional material, or any other promotional material, for that matter. I saw the promo after last week's episode, the same promo several times during the week aaaaand that's about it.

[cryyhavoc]

I find Sanvers as dull as dishwater, Alex used to be a kick-ass DEO agent. Now, as someone said upthread, what new teen-age relationship drama will she endure this week.  Get rid of Maggie and bring back the Danvers sister relationship, way more interesting.

[Oreo2234]

Mon-el is just as responsible as Maggie for seeing less of the Danvers sister's relationship. He gets significantly more screentime than Maggie and a lot of it is with Kara. 

[diebartdie]

23 hours ago, KirkB said:

Mon-El can't fly, right? So how did he literally drop into the scene? Did he jump off a building or something?

He has super jump.

[Trini]

On 2/20/2017 at 9:43 PM, thuganomics85 said:

And, once again, no James.  At this point, I'm hoping Mehcad Brooks is looking for other offers, because James clearly has limited value at this point.  At this point, the Legends could probably have better use for him (he can write about all of their adventures!)

I'd rather he stays and they use him more effectively, but I'm also almost at the point where I think he should move on to something better, since clearly the show isn't interested in him anymore. However, I think if he does go that will be the end of CatCo on the show, and the end of Kara balancing life/superheroing. But then again, they haven't been exploring that since the move to CW.

I can already see them writing off James in Season 3 (maybe he goes back to Metropolis?), and I hate it. I'd really love to know what went on and who said what behind the scenes for the to show to demote James/Mehcad for Wonderbread Mon-el/Woods.

[stealinghome]

tbh I wouldn't be surprised if the show writes off either James or Mon-El at the end of this season. They are duplicates in terms of their functions on the show (both are the love interest/ex-love interest for Kara, both are going through learning to be superhero arcs...at least theoretically) and cast bloat is definitely a problem at the moment--everyone's stories are getting short shrift because there's too many balls to juggle. The obvious solution is to write one of them off...we'll see if it happens.

[Shades of Scarlet]

Absolutely fantastic episode and my favorite of the season easily and right up there with "Falling" and "World's Finest" for my favorite of the series.  

This was without a doubt, for me, the best-written Supergirl ep yet in terms of dialogue.  And it was hilarious.  The orange juice.  Mon-El saying a quick hi to "Dana" while in the middle of the fight with Kara on the DEO floor.  J'onn's casual "Mon-El" when he was teleported into the DEO in his skivvies.  Kara had several great one-liners.  Peter Gadiot was perfect as Mxyzptlk.  The physical comedy was also outstanding.  

And in a season where Supergirl has often been sidelined in favor of establishing Superman (well done), Alex & Maggie (mostly well done and often touching but slow it down a bit already), the Guardian stuff (mostly oof), and even J'onn/M'gann (also good) and the villains (mixed bag), this episode was all about Kara despite the subplots.  Kara had full-on agency!  Mxyzptlk came looking for her because, watching her adventures from afar, he thought she was awesome, and the show didn't just tell us that, it showed it.  She had the right idea about how to handle "Mxy" from the start; she ended up running circles around him and outwitting him like the genius that she is supposed to be after carefully listening to and using J'onn's story about the importance of writing in certain cultures; she paused to listen to Alex's problems in a nice scene and then gently but firmly told Maggie what time it was enabling the resolution of the Alex/Maggie conflict; she stood up to Mon-El - complete with an awesome "I'm not a damsel in distress" speech - and also completely outmaneuvered him; and at the end of the episode, she got the guy (finally!  I was starting to wonder if the writers were going to give us a chaste Supergirl character for the entire series run) that she wanted, without even being interrupted by superpowered villains at the moment of the kiss.  THIS was the Kara Zor-El from the comics (when handled properly), a confident, invulnerable alien with smarts, listening skills, many years of memories of Krypton informing her actions and someone you could believe that Brainiac 5 (in some continuities) would completely go for.  I've loved almost every minute of this show since it premiered but bravo to the writers for this spot-on depiction of their lead.

And out of universe, just as in "Falling," Melissa was more than equal to everything she had to do to carry the episode.  Smart, very funny, even a menacing badass for a few beats in a couple of scenes going toe-to-toe with her suitors, highly believable as the clever hero who saved the day with her wits instead of punching anything other than an ice scuplture, and heartfelt and simply gorgeous throughout but particularly in the final scene.  I think I've said here before that I would watch any show featuring Kara Zor-El as the lead, but now I simply can't imagine another performer in the part.  She's fantastic.  

Chris Wood did his usual good job and the introduction of a James-free subplot and a cute romance for Winn, with an alienized Tamzin Merchant no less, was a great touch.

Bravo to Melissa, the writers, and everyone involved with this one.  A pure joy and treat.            

[JapMo]

2 hours ago, Shades of Scarlet said:

and at the end of the episode, she got the guy (finally!  I was starting to wonder if the writers were going to give us a chaste Supergirl character for the entire series run)

The ending was good, IMO, because Kara was different.  She wasn't giggly and stammering like she has been with Mon-El and definitely not the way she was when she was crushing on Jimmy.  She wanted Mon-El and she pretty much showed it, as opposed to the Hands-Off-I'm-A-Virgin routine they've put her in all last season and part of this.  And it turned out to be a pretty hot scene.  Melissa and Chris have a lot of chemistry from what I see.

I never liked James except when he was with Lucy.  Another couple I thought had a lot of chemistry.  Mehcad is attractive and maybe he could have a fling with Lena.  I still hope for her and Winn to be paired up based on their one scene under the table at her party, but let's face it...Winn is not in her league.  But James could be.  He's the head of Catco and probably runs in the same social circles as Lena.   

[Shades of Scarlet]

10 hours ago, JapMo said:

The ending was good, IMO, because Kara was different.  She wasn't giggly and stammering like she has been with Mon-El and definitely not the way she was when she was crushing on Jimmy.  She wanted Mon-El and she pretty much showed it, as opposed to the Hands-Off-I'm-A-Virgin routine they've put her in all last season and part of this.  And it turned out to be a pretty hot scene.  Melissa and Chris have a lot of chemistry from what I see.

I never liked James except when he was with Lucy.  Another couple I thought had a lot of chemistry.  Mehcad is attractive and maybe he could have a fling with Lena.  I still hope for her and Winn to be paired up based on their one scene under the table at her party, but let's face it...Winn is not in her league.  But James could be.  He's the head of Catco and probably runs in the same social circles as Lena.   

As to your first point, exactly.  Kara (and Melissa) just completely owned the episode.  As for it being a hot scene, uh, yes.  I'm reminded of something Reiko Aylesworth, who played Michelle Dessler on 24, said about Kiefer Sutherland - that he would have chemistry with a lamppost.  I think Melissa is the same way.  Whether it's Grant Gustin, her then-IRL hubby (admittedly not surprising), Calista, Katie McGrath, or Chris Wood, if you don't have chemistry with Melissa Benoist, you're likely the problem.  Right, Mehcad?  I for one am looking forward to more of such scenes, and to the Kara/Mon-El relationship, particularly when the pursuing aliens (who are taking their time) catch up with him and he has to admit he's the prince of Daxam.  

James and Lena would definitely be interesting and I also thought he was great with Lucy; Mehcad and Jenna did have chemistry.  But I don't think it's a good sign that they couldn't fit James into what was one of their best shows yet.   

[MarkHB]

On 2/21/2017 at 5:57 PM, kalamac said:

Someone who claims to be in the know on tumblr (I know...) says some of the writers are not happy with the direction Supergirl has taken with Mon-el/Kara, but a being made to write to what the CW thinks is the demographic.

Do you have the link to that?  Just curious.

My gut feeling (going more by comic lore than CW politics) is that Mon-El will leave at the end of the season, exiled to the Phantom Zone with lead poisoning.  I noted that that was mentioned in this episode.

[Cranberry]

I've had the same feeling, Mark... probably shortly after doing something heroic, for the extra emotional impact. I actually like the character (not as a romantic partner for Kara, but I find him amusing otherwise), but I wouldn't miss him.

[kalamac]

12 minutes ago, MarkHB said:

Do you have the link to that?  Just curious.

My gut feeling (going more by comic lore than CW politics) is that Mon-El will leave at the end of the season, exiled to the Phantom Zone with lead poisoning.  I noted that that was mentioned in this episode.

Don't have the link, but I screencapped some of the convo to show a friend when I first read it.

[emarasmoak]

6 hours ago, kalamac said:

Don't have the link, but I screencapped some of the convo to show a friend when I first read it.

Well, reading that, I will only say that that doesn't seems to be an unbiased source.

[Shades of Scarlet]

1 hour ago, emarasmoak said:

Well, reading that, I will only say that that doesn't seems to be an unbiased source.

LOL.  Not so much.  I will also say that if said friend of writers and artists of the show thinks that the Alex/Maggie relationship has been underserved this season, they may have been catching a different program than I've been watching.  It sounds as though the only real solutions to that poster's dilemma are to pair Kara with Lena post haste or just go the whole nine and write Kara off the show at once.  

[kitmerlot1213]

16 hours ago, Cranberry said:

I've had the same feeling, Mark... probably shortly after doing something heroic, for the extra emotional impact. I actually like the character (not as a romantic partner for Kara, but I find him amusing otherwise), but I wouldn't miss him.

It might be a neat twist if Mon-El stays on the show, but not as Kara's fellow superhero but as a man on the street, here's what I learned from working at the alien bar type situation--like an inside source to what's happening in the alien world.  

I do think Chris Wood and Melissa are adorable together and I hope we get to see Mon-El's actually maturing and learning from his mistakes because I'm sure it's jarring living on Earth with superpowers when he's used to living at the Royal Court of Daxam, but I can't see them as a long term pairing.

Edited February 23, 2017 by kitmerlot1213

[Lazlo]

On 2/22/2017 at 0:17 AM, cryyhavoc said:

I find Sanvers as dull as dishwater, Alex used to be a kick-ass DEO agent. Now, as someone said upthread, what new teen-age relationship drama will she endure this week.  Get rid of Maggie and bring back the Danvers sister relationship, way more interesting.

Thank God. I thought I was the only one who felt that way.

I found Alex's coming out story moving and powerful, but when she's actually with Maggie she seems more like a teenager (and a young teenager at that) than a supposedly nearly thirty year old secret agent/scientist. I understand that this is all somewhat new to her, but Alex definitely seems far less emotionally mature than she should be.

I agree Winn's date had a very Buffyverse-look.

At this point I wouldn't be surprised if James is gone altogether sooner rather than later. He feels very disconnected from the DEO arc and the CatCo scenes are so infrequent you'd be forgiven for forgetting Kara has another job altogether.

[Xander]

I thought the episode was really fun. It felt like everyone - the main cast, the writers, the GUEST STAR, director - had a lot of fun with it. I really enjoyed Mxy (even though he got creepier with time) and hope to see him again. 

As for writing to demographics, all I know is that I found the James/Kara thing painful to watch but am having fun with this Mon-El/Kara pairing. I think it's gotten more enjoyable with time and they've found their stride. Plus the actors seem to be having fun with it. 

All I want now that they've sorted out their feelings is for the show to shift away from the romance drama. 

[Canada]

Geez, could Maggie have been any more of a bitch this episode?  Getting mad at Alex for not being psychic?  Get lost.  Alex deserves so much better.

[JapMo]

All I can say about trying to send the show a message is there's a LOT of interest in Mon-El on You-Tube.  I thought most people didn't like him as a romantic interest for Kara, but after Monday's episode, I saw a ton of videos or whatever it's called on You-Tube about the kissing scene, and all the responses are how much they love the couple.  I was surprised.

I don't know if anyone else thought of this, but at Thanksgiving, Mon-El said on his planet people are paired up at birth, so would that mean that there's someone out there who is betrothed to him?  And if so, who wants odds that person survived the destruction of Daxam and he is going to have to honor his commitment and marry her?  Unless Kara kicks her ass.

[djinn]

On 2/21/2017 at 7:17 PM, cryyhavoc said:

I find Sanvers as dull as dishwater, Alex used to be a kick-ass DEO agent. Now, as someone said upthread, what new teen-age relationship drama will she endure this week.

I find "Sanvers" completely sleep-inducing too. Much, much worse, I used to LOVE Alex as a character before she became completely about her love life. Now, her constant lovesickness and "relationship problems" have turned her into one of the most forgettable characters. The "Sanvers" storyline is so, so typically CW.

[Oreo2234]

Quote

I found Alex's coming out story moving and powerful, but when she's actually with Maggie she seems more like a teenager (and a young teenager at that) than a supposedly nearly thirty year old secret agent/scientist. I understand that this is all somewhat new to her, but Alex definitely seems far less emotionally mature than she should be.

Kara is often written like that too when it comes to romance. I  mostly like the Alex/Maggie story but I do think that Alex could be written more maturely. She was more mature in their early interactions and I would like her to eventually get back to that. 

Edited February 23, 2017 by Oreo2234

[stealinghome]

1 hour ago, Canada said:

Geez, could Maggie have been any more of a bitch this episode?  Getting mad at Alex for not being psychic?  Get lost.  Alex deserves so much better.

It's funny how mileage varies--I thought Alex was way more in the wrong on this. Yes, Maggie absolutely should have been more forthcoming on why she hates V-Day, I agree. But Maggie clearly articulated that she doesn't like the holiday and didn't want to celebrate it, and Alex *completely* disregarded Maggie's stated wishes and in the process stirred up some real trauma from Maggie's past. I would have been pretty damn upset if I was Maggie too, if my girlfriend basically said "I don't care what you want, I'm going to make us do what I want to do and you have stated clearly that you don't want to do!" There was a disregard of Maggie's desires there that I didn't like. (The obvious parallel the episode made was to Mon-El being a huge tool and not listening to anything Kara said.)

If anything, I think Alex is the one who expected Maggie to be psychic, and understand that even though Alex out loud agreed that V-Day was overrated and they shouldn't celebrate, what she really meant was "but I actually really want to celebrate it!" What Alex should have done is have a conversation where she tried to find a compromise from the start.

Re: Sanvers, while I agree I'd like to see ass-kicking Alex make an re-appearance soon, it seems to me that a lager chunk of the problem is that Mon-El has replaced Alex as Kara's partner at work. He's now getting a lot of the fight scenes that used to go to Alex and J'onn (who has really become the forgotten man in all this). Same for cutting down on the sister time--I have a hard time blaming Maggie's like 120 seconds of screentime with Alex per episode when Mon-El is probably taking up 10+ minutes of Kara's screentime. I do agree Alex is acting a bit lovesick but I find that entirely in character. For all intents and purposes, she's in her first real relationship, we all were like that in our first real relationship; she's also just a happier, healthier human being now that she's accepted her sexuality. Of course she's going to be happier than we've ever seen her. She's in the honeymoon phase on a lot of different levels. It may be very CW, but no more so than Kara/Mon-El--and I would argue way more earned/authentic than Kara/Mon-El.

[Xander]

In the two episodes before this one, all Mon-El did was show up for the romance storyline so we can't say that he's replaced Alex as Kara's partner. However, now that they are together, there is a danger that he will, especially as Kara trained him and he's stronger than Alex. 

Edited February 23, 2017 by Xander

[djinn]

3 hours ago, Oreo2234 said:

Kara is often written like that too when it comes to romance. I  mostly like the Alex/Maggie story

Kara is written like that when it comes to romance - yes. But Kara being Supergirl, also spends some time not being about romance. Alex seems to be only about romance nowadays. I don't find anything remotely likable about the Alex/Maggie story. I liked them a loooong time back before they turned romantic. Different strokes and all that.

[Perfect Xero]

That's something that seems to happen in super hero shows, the people without super powers tend to get sidelined as they add more super powered people to the cast.

You'd think that the DEO would be getting Winn to build Alex and the rest of her team some super advanced crime fighting suits like he made for James.

[stealinghome]

Or even just, you know, use the suit Alex actually already has!

I do agree there's been too many superpowered people running around this season. imo having so many dilutes Kara's impact, just as having a robust alien population in National City dilutes her and J'onn's pathos as the last two survivors of their respective civilizations.

[ahisma]

Quote

I don't know if anyone else thought of this, but at Thanksgiving, Mon-El said on his planet people are paired up at birth, so would that mean that there's someone out there who is betrothed to him?  And if so, who wants odds that person survived the destruction of Daxam and he is going to have to honor his commitment and marry her?

Maybe that's why he has people from the slave planet after him... could be interesting, or could be the "high drama" plot line of getting together with Kara, and suddenly his pursuers show up to whisk him away to his royal marriage, and that's how Kara finds out he's a prince, and oh noes he lied to her, blah blah, blah.

Quote

But Maggie clearly articulated that she doesn't like the holiday and didn't want to celebrate it, and Alex *completely* disregarded Maggie's stated wishes and in the process stirred up some real trauma from Maggie's past.

But Maggie stated it as a dislike of a manufactured holiday pushing wilted roses and cheap chocolate, not a source of personal trauma. Alex, thoughtfully, put a lot of consideration into gifting her with scotch and tiramisu to show that it was about her, not commercialism. (Though Alex did set herself up to begin with by reading Maggie's attitude and volunteering up front that the holiday is dumb.) They both really, really need to communicate better.

It's hard watching Alex act like this, but I've seen people her age and older do the same when they didn't have a first love in high school or college. Make your mistakes young, kids, because it's not as embarrassing to be stupid as a teen, and you will be stupid with your first love! 

[stealinghome]

Alex is also having really good sex for the first time in her life. Just saying. ;)

[Shades of Scarlet]

21 hours ago, kitmerlot1213 said:

It might be a neat twist if Mon-El stays on the show, but not as Kara's fellow superhero but as a man on the street, here's what I learned from working at the alien bar type situation--like an inside source to what's happening in the alien world.  

I do think Chris Wood and Melissa are adorable together and I hope we get to see Mon-El's actually maturing and learning from his mistakes because I'm sure it's jarring living on Earth with superpowers when he's used to living at the Royal Court of Daxam, but I can't see them as a long term pairing.

I love that take.  Yeah, they're probably not destined to be together for the run of the show since the show is so young, and now pretty firmly entrenched on the CW, renewed for S3 and (because of the way syndication works) therefore almost sure to get an S4.  The show could go seven or eight seasons, or as long as Melissa wants to do it and they want to pay her; she's sort of indispensable!  

As a longtime reader of the Legion of Superheroes comics as a kid - hell, I should check them out now as an adult, something I've been meaning to do for a while - I would flove to see Kara time-jump into the 30th or 31st century and join the Legion for some adventures.  We know this is possible and even in the writers' minds somewhere because of not only Mon-El's comics origin, but because of that little glimpse of the Legion flight ring they showed us in the episode last season when Kara took James to the Fortress of Solitude ("Solitude" was the ep title, I think?).  The camera took a very deliberate shot of the ring so it was instantly recognizable to viewers who knew LSH stuff, and Kara looked at it too, but showed no indication she knew what it was.  However, clearly Kal/Clark has hung out with the Legion.  Maybe TPTB have a 1,000-year time jump for Mon-El in mind on a semi-permanent basis to restore some of the comics continuity for the character.  Or maybe he'll hang on the show for a while.  As funny as Chris Wood is and as chemtastic as he and Melissa are together, I'm good with it.     

 

17 hours ago, JapMo said:

All I can say about trying to send the show a message is there's a LOT of interest in Mon-El on You-Tube.  I thought most people didn't like him as a romantic interest for Kara, but after Monday's episode, I saw a ton of videos or whatever it's called on You-Tube about the kissing scene, and all the responses are how much they love the couple.  I was surprised.

I don't know if anyone else thought of this, but at Thanksgiving, Mon-El said on his planet people are paired up at birth, so would that mean that there's someone out there who is betrothed to him?  And if so, who wants odds that person survived the destruction of Daxam and he is going to have to honor his commitment and marry her?  Unless Kara kicks her ass.

Another great story idea.

I think what you found matches what I've seen elsewhere and heard -  Mon-El and Chris Wood are quite popular on the whole among the show's fans.  On this board I guess I'd say that many of the frequent posters don't seem to like him, but elsewhere, it's quite different.  Mileage varying and all that.   

[ItCouldBeWorse]

21 hours ago, JapMo said:

I don't know if anyone else thought of this, but at Thanksgiving, Mon-El said on his planet people are paired up at birth, so would that mean that there's someone out there who is betrothed to him?  And if so, who wants odds that person survived the destruction of Daxam and he is going to have to honor his commitment and marry her?  Unless Kara kicks her ass.

So,  Amok Time minus the pon farr?   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amok_Time

Edited February 24, 2017 by ItCouldBeWorse

[Shades of Scarlet]

7 minutes ago, ItCouldBeWorse said:

So, Amok Time minus the pon farr?   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amok_Time

Brilliant shoutout.  "After a time, you may find that having is not so pleasing a thing after all as wanting. It is not logical, but it is often true."

[RacerHo7]

This AV Club review  excerpt pretty much sums up my feelings perfectly.

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I almost feel bad coming down harshly on “Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk,” which is one of the more fun and original episodes in Supergirl’s run. Once Upon A Time In Wonderland’s Peter Gadiot relishes the chance to play a fifth dimensional imp named Mr. Mxyzptlk (Mxy if you’re nasty) who’s hellbent on marrying Kara Zor-El. His nearly infinite set of powers gives the show a whole new visual sandbox to play in. And the episode a cheesy-but-charming tone that feels like a throwback to some of the more comedic episodes of Buffy The Vampire Slayer or Star Trek. But while there’s a lot to like around the edges of “Mr. & Mrs. Mxyzptlk,” the episode unfortunately layers all that charm on top of a core that just can’t sustain it: Mon-El and his man problems.

When Mxy crashes Kara and Mon-El’s first kiss with an over-the-top (and Aladdin-themed) attempt to woo Kara, Mon-El is thrown into a panic. He becomes convinced that Kara will be won over by Mxy’s powers and falls into a petulant sulk. And fueled by jealousy and a fear of losing Kara, Mon-El regresses back to his worst macho posturing impulses.

To be fair, Supergirl knows that Mon-El is in the wrong. Kara openly calls him out on his condescension and paternalism. But, unfortunately, the episode doesn’t quite realize the extent to which Mon-El is in the wrong. His adamant belief that Kara will be won over by Mxy is the equivalent of assuming an unsolicited dick pic is going to lure your girlfriend away from you. It’s an insane thing to think and a clear indication that Mon-El doesn’t actually know Kara as well as he thinks he does, especially given how often he directly disobeys her request not to get involved. But rather than sell his regression as a comedic overreaction, the episode tries to make it work as a real emotional beat. We’re supposed to genuinely feel for Mon-El as he apologies to Kara with tears in his eyes. The problem is I just don’t want to be rooting for the guy who lashes out at his girlfriend for receiving unsolicited dick pics and then hunts down the dick pic-sender to literally murder him in a duel. That doesn’t make for a sympathetic or likable romantic hero, which is clearly what Supergirl wants Mon-El to be.

The other problem is that Supergirl already explored the “Mon-El needs to learn to trust and respect Kara” story just a few episodes ago in “We Can Be Heroes.” It’s fine for Mon-El to be a flawed character, but having him repeat the same flaws over and over again just makes him seem like an unworthy match for Kara. Other than just straight-up wanting to jump his bones (which, fair), it’s unclear what Kara actually sees in Mon-El, a man who has repeatedly undermined and insulted her (in this episode he directly states that she’s not a good judge of what she can handle). And given that her breakup with James at the beginning of the season was so poorly motivated, the collective weight of Kara’s relationship problems is starting to make her seem flighty and shallow.

 

av club review

[Rushmoras]

So... when will Supergirl return to the story-arch, which has been forgotten for so many episodes now? I.e., saving her and Alex's father? Or will Jeremiah be saved in the last episode of the season as if it's nothing at all? I mean, who can possibly point out what story-arch is this season about? Because I sure can't. Just some random episodes, not related to each other...

[kalamac]

4 minutes ago, Rushmoras said:

So... when will Supergirl return to the story-arch, which has been forgotten for so many episodes now? I.e., saving her and Alex's father? Or will Jeremiah be saved in the last episode of the season as if it's nothing at all? I mean, who can possibly point out what story-arch is this season about? Because I sure can't. Just some random episodes, not related to each other...

Jeremiah is back in next week's episode. Not sure how they rescue him, but the promos show him with the family at Kara's apartment.

[Lazlo]

11 minutes ago, Rushmoras said:

So... when will Supergirl return to the story-arch, which has been forgotten for so many episodes now? I.e., saving her and Alex's father? Or will Jeremiah be saved in the last episode of the season as if it's nothing at all? I mean, who can possibly point out what story-arch is this season about? Because I sure can't. Just some random episodes, not related to each other...

The problem is that the person who would be most emotionally invested in that storyline - Alex - has spent almost the entire season in a story-arch that is also emotionally heavy but is completely unrelated.

[stealinghome]

5 hours ago, Rushmoras said:

So... when will Supergirl return to the story-arch, which has been forgotten for so many episodes now? I.e., saving her and Alex's father? Or will Jeremiah be saved in the last episode of the season as if it's nothing at all? I mean, who can possibly point out what story-arch is this season about? Because I sure can't. Just some random episodes, not related to each other...

Yeah, this is increasingly a problem for me, and I'm glad the most recent AVClub review called the season's aimlessness out as well. Part of the problem is that they've just tried to shoehorn WAY too much into this season, and it would also really help if, you know, Kara herself had an actual storyline (shocking that you might want to give the titular character an actual storyline)...but still, when your show did serialization better *on CBS*, you need to rethink how you do your season-long arcs.

Edited February 25, 2017 by stealinghome

[MarkHB]

Personally, I'm a non-fan of serialization,  so the less time they spent on long arcs, the happier I am with the show (or any show).

[statsgirl]

I was on Maggie's side on terms of Valentine's Day. She told Alex she hated it and Alex should have respected her wishes without Maggie having to open up and tell her about a major trauma to justify it.  Also I didn't like Kara telling Maggie that it's important to Alex so she should change her ways. If it's important to Alex, she should celebrate in a way that respects Maggie's wishes.

I was in a relationship where the default was always what he wanted unless I could justify to him why it should be what I wanted and it was exhausting.  I don't wish that on Maggie.

On 2017-02-21 at 6:13 PM, stealinghome said:

But I still blame the writers because Mon-El aside, they're the ones who have failed to give Kara a storyline outside of him

They've also failed to give Mon-El a storyline outside of Kara.  He's dismissive of her, he's a fratboy, he falls for her and wants to be better to mate with her.  Even if you hate James' Guardian storyline and think he's useless at CatCo, at least he's got something to do apart from Kara.  Mon-El has nothing (I don't count his job at the alien bar because even that is always about Kara).

On 2017-02-22 at 11:08 PM, MarkHB said:

My gut feeling (going more by comic lore than CW politics) is that Mon-El will leave at the end of the season, exiled to the Phantom Zone with lead poisoning.  I noted that that was mentioned in this episode.

It feels like they are going so all in with the Kara/Mon El romance while giving him nothing really of his own that they expect to write him out at the end of the season.  He's this year's Kara-romance.  On the other hand, that may be my wishful thinking and he's here to stay for the long term.  Since I find him as appetizing as overly processed white bread with mayo, I hope it's the former.

On 2017-02-24 at 8:32 AM, Shades of Scarlet said:

I think what you found matches what I've seen elsewhere and heard -  Mon-El and Chris Wood are quite popular on the whole among the show's fans.  On this board I guess I'd say that many of the frequent posters don't seem to like him, but elsewhere, it's quite different.  Mileage varying and all that.   

TVLine is the only other place I go to regularly and many posts are pretty scathing about Mon-El there too.

[stealinghome]

14 minutes ago, statsgirl said:

TVLine is the only other place I go to regularly and many posts are pretty scathing about Mon-El there too.

Does anyone else look at SpoilerTV regularly? For the past few weeks, the comments section of every single Supergirl article has become a battlefield between Mon-El haters and Mon-El stans. It's gotten pretty scathing. I'm glad we haven't gotten that heated here!

[legaleagle53]

2 hours ago, statsgirl said:

I was on Maggie's side on terms of Valentine's Day. She told Alex she hated it and Alex should have respected her wishes without Maggie having to open up and tell her about a major trauma to justify it.  Also I didn't like Kara telling Maggie that it's important to Alex so she should change her ways. If it's important to Alex, she should celebrate in a way that respects Maggie's wishes.

That means that Alex would never celebrate it at all.  That's a little unfair to Alex, don't you think?  Just because Maggie was traumatized to the point that she hates the day doesn't mean that Alex should be forever denied the opportunity to celebrate her love for Maggie and her joy in their relationship on the one day of the year that is expressly dedicated to celebrating that joy.  And Maggie should also understand that the past is the past and that at some point she should let it go and move on, not just for Alex's sake, but her own.  

Moreover, what kind of relationship can Alex and Maggie have if Maggie refuses to open up to Alex about a major trauma like that? Doesn't Alex deserve to know the truth if she's ever to fully share in Maggie's life?  It's why the No. 1 unwritten rule of relationships is never to have secrets between the participants in the relationship.

Edited February 26, 2017 by legaleagle53

[stealinghome]

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That means that Alex would never celebrate it at all.  That's a little unfair to Alex, don't you think?  Just because Maggie was traumatized to the point that she hates the day doesn't mean that Alex should be forever denied the opportunity to celebrate her love for Maggie and her joy in their relationship on the one day of the year that is expressly dedicated to celebrating that joy.  And Maggie should also understand that the past is the past and that at some point she should let it go and move on, not just for Alex's sake, but her own.  

Moreover, what kind of relationship can Alex and Maggie have if Maggie refuses to open up to Alex about a major trauma like that? Doesn't Alex deserve to know the truth if she's ever to fully share in Maggie's life?  It's why the No. 1 unwritten rule of relationships is never to have secrets between the participants in the relationship.

 

I completely agree that Alex and Maggie should have found a compromise regarding Valentine's Day that would allow both of them to feel they had their wishes respected--which is why I think Alex handled the situation poorly. Instead of agreeing with Maggie that Valentine's Day sucks and then turning around and doing exactly what Maggie didn't want and Alex had agreed they wouldn't do, what Alex should have done imo was have with Maggie the conversation she actually had with Kara. Alex should have sat Maggie down and said "I understand that you don't like Valentine's Day, but it would mean a lot to me if we could celebrate it and do the things I haven't gotten to do before, so is there a way that we can compromise and celebrate in a non-commercial, non-cliche way that would be fun for you as well?" That conversation would likely have gotten them to the same place without the tears. Or at least as many tears! I mean, I definitely agree that it was healthier for Maggie to begin to work past her own trauma (the fact that she planned a prom was a pretty definitive sign in that direction), but I just can't fault her for being upset that she explicitly said to Alex "I don't want x," Alex agreed that they wouldn't do x, and then Alex went and did x anyway. If Alex wants something different than what Maggie wants, at the end of the day Alex needs to speak up and articulate her actual desires, and then they'll work together to find a compromise. It's not easy, but that's how adult relationships work--which is why this is a learning process for Alex!

Re: the second point, yes, I generally agree that Alex and Maggie need to know the major things about each other to make a long-term relationship viable--but I get where Maggie's coming from, because I probably wouldn't be comfortable talking about a major trauma like that to someone I'd only been dating for three months max, either. Maggie not being ready for that degree of emotional openness so early in the relationship doesn't mean she's not invested or will always keep secrets from Alex, it just means trust/emotional intimacy is a process that takes a little longer for her. I do think she's pretty emotionally locked down to begin with and could probably stand to become a little more open as a baseline, but still...people truly open up their hearts at their own pace, and while it might be hard to feel like you're the one who is way farther ahead (Alex), things tend to go better if you let your partner move at their own speed. (Plus, for Maggie, the difficulty of coming clean about her hatred for V-Day would have been compounded by the fact that it would mean admitting she lied about her own coming out way back when. Which is totally a problem of her own making, I agree, but also explains some of the reticence there.)

It does make me wonder what Maggie has been telling Alex about her family before now, though. Has she just been saying that she's not close to her family and not talking about them? Has she been artfully changing the subject every time family comes up? Does she even have any pictures in her apartment? Has she spoken to her parents since being kicked out, or has she literally not talked to them in like a decade and a half? Is she still close with the aunt who took her in, at least, and are there other, non-parent family members she still talks to? Etc. I have to confess that I do hope someday we get a scene of Alex being super nervous about meeting some family member!